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MajorsApr 18, 2018
De Beers Will No Longer Sell Diamonds to Gitanjali
The diamond miner and marketer has dropped the company as a sightholder.
London--De Beers will no longer sell diamonds to Gitanjali Gems, the retailer and manufacturer headed by Mehul Choksi, who is implicated alongside his nephew Nirav Modi in defrauding an Indian bank out of billions.
A De Beers spokesperson confirmed to National Jeweler Tuesday that Gitanjali’s sightholder status was dropped in February.
The company declined to say why, stating only: “While we don’t comment on individual businesses, De Beers requires all sightholders to meet rigorous financial and ethical compliance criteria.”
Both Choksi and Modi have denied being involved in obtaining fraudulent loans totaling $1.8 billion from Punjab National Bank and never paying them back. They are currently wanted in India.
Both also have U.S. ties.
Modi, through a complicated web of companies, is the owner of Firestar Diamond/Fantasy Inc. and diamond jewelry brand A. Jaffe, both of which are in Chapter 11 bankruptcy right now.
Choksi’s Gitanjali owns a sizable jewelry store chain in the United States that’s based in Austin, Texas, and operates under the corporate name Samuels Jewelers Inc.
RELATED CONTENT: Nirav Modi Case is ‘Another Nail in the Coffin’Samuels did not respond to calls and emails asking how Gitanjali’s loss of sightholder status will impact its business.
In an interview published in early March, CEO Farhad Wadia told JCKOnline.com that it was “business as usual” and that the company has an “arm’s length” relationship with parent firm Gitanjali.
Wadia’s claim seems to contradict earlier interviews given by both Wadia himself and Gitanjali executives touting the benefits of being a “vertically integrated” company, meaning the retailer has a direct line of supply for diamonds and jewelry manufacturing via their ownership by Gitanjali.
Samuels Jewelers Inc. operates Samuels Jewelers, Samuels Diamonds, Rogers Jewelers, Andrews Jewelers and Schubach Jewelers stores.
In National Jeweler’s latest State of the Majors report, the retailer ranked No. 32 on the list of $100 Million Supersellers, with an estimated $156 million in jewelry and watch sales in 2016.
The retailer tied with Tiffany & Co. at No. 7 on the list of largest specialty jewelers in North America (by store count) with a total of 119 stores as of the end of 2016, though recent reports indicate its store count is now at 108.
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